


Maho Shoujo Yuuko-chan

by Noodlenugget



Category: Nichijou | My Ordinary Life (Anime & Manga)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-12
Updated: 2018-08-15
Packaged: 2019-06-26 09:22:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 9,185
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15660324
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Noodlenugget/pseuds/Noodlenugget
Summary: A combination of mad science, misunderstandings and luck transform Yuuko from an everyday schoolgirl into a magical girl! (And back again, of course)





	1. Idea! Hakase's new creation!

Hakase Shinonome was probably the most dangerous eight-year-old on the planet. Her childish demeanour belied an incredible intelligence that even the most advanced of adult minds couldn't comprehend. She could create robots so real that they were pretty much human; emotions and all. She had invented a scarf that could translate animal thoughts into human speech. With all these creations and more under her belt, she could have very well conquered the world by now.

Thankfully, she had little interest in playing dictator. Rather, she spent her days watching TV, eating way too many snacks and playing with her cat.

Today, she was doing the former.

Four magical girls littered the TV screen, fighting an epic battle against a giant telephone-shaped monster. The pink one leapt to an absurd height and kicked it in the face. As it stumbled back, the orange and yellow ones tripped it up. With their opponent now defenceless, the green one (Who'd been having the most character development this episode) charged up her special attack.

"Emerald…Shining sphere!"

Announcing the attack, the teenager sent a giant green energy ball hurtling towards her opponent. It shot through the sky and exploded on contact. Despite the fact that it was pure stock footage, Hakase couldn't help but be in awe of the power of moving pictures.

"So cool!" She cried, stuffing another pocky into her mouth. "Purin-girls are so cool!"

Sakamoto, her cat, friend and secondary guardian did not share her enthusiasm.

"Hey kid," He scoffed. "You've been watching too much TV."

"But it's Suuuuunnnndaaaaay…." Hakase whined. "What else am I supposed to do?"

A black paw pressed down on the remote control, the screen turning off.

"Too much sitting around isn't good for you. Go out and play or something."

"But I don't wanna! I wanna watch Purin-girls!"

It was amazing, Sakamoto thought, how someone so smart could be so incredibly childish at the same time.

"I wanna! I wanna! I wanna!"

Her tantrum-throwing powers were great. Perhaps even legendary. Sakamoto however, was not going to give up. She learnt that the hard way after five minutes of crying and thumping the carpet brought no results. Her energy levels drained, she let out a groan and lay on the ground.

"You're mean…"

Sticks and stones may break his bones, but words would never hurt Sakamoto.

"It's for your own good," He said, leaving the room.

Once the cat had left, the child reached for the remote, pressing down on the power button.

Nothing happened.

She tried again. And again. And again.

Still nothing.

Hakase flipped the device over, only to find the case on the back undone and the batteries removed. The cat, having learnt her weaknesses after months of living under the same roof, had bested her. If she wanted to watch TV, she'd be forced to switch it on at the main device.

Yet the idea didn't come to her. Instead, something far more radical, dangerous yet utterly brilliant did.

"If I can't watch Purin-girls… I'll be a Purin girl!"

With newfound zeal, she ran out of the room. Once she set her mind on something, the young inventor would move heaven and earth just to make her dream a reality.  
\--------------------  
"I'm home!"

Nano Shinonome had not been at home the past two hours. Rather, she had been busy shopping for groceries, snacks and a new rotating fan. She'd grilled the professor earlier about simply building a new one, but of course, it was never that simple.

"I don't how to!" She'd answered. "I've built so many big things I forgot how to make little ones!"

Nano didn't know if that was true or just her lazy side talking. In either case, she decided it'd be quicker (and safer) just to buy one herself.

"Nano! Nano! Look what I've built!"

Her creator ran down the hallway, clutching a bright blue brooch in the shape of a shark.

"Guess what it is!"

Knowing Hakase, that accessory could be anything. For all Nano knew, it could be something that made you fly or something that changed your skin colour! Tired from her long day, she decided to take a shot in the dark.

"Is it… A magical girl brooch?"

Nano had caught glimpses those kinds of shows whenever Hakase was watching them. From what she could gather, brooches were one of the most popular trinkets used for transformation. Either that or (For whatever reason) a make-up compact.

"Yay! That's right!" Hakase cheered. "I'm gonna try it! Watch this!"

"Absolutely not!"

Nano's hand nearly launched out of its socket. Quickly, she snatched the device from her creator, holding it just out of reach.

"Nano! Give it baaaaack!" Hakase whined.

The robot shook her head and stood on her tip-toes. Hakase bounced up and down.

"No! You're too young to be a magical girl! What if you get hurt?"

"I wooooon't!"

She shook her head. Creating androids was one thing, but manipulating the laws of reality to imitate an anime? That was going too far.

"You will. Do you even know how dangerous something like that is?"

"I knew you'd say that!" Insisted the minor. "That's why I wrote a whole instruction manual, see?!"

Reaching into her coat pocket, she pulled out a small white booklet. On the front was a badly-drawn human with a shark tail, obviously meant to be Hakase herself.

"You'll catch a cold wearing clothes like that…" The android muttered.

Taking the handbook from the professor, she was amazed by just how much detail she had gone into it. There were instructions on how to work the thing, a list of its powers and even a small flipbook section of a stick figure punching a monster in the face.

Nano hated to see efforts gone to waste but if it meant protecting her creator…

"I want it! I want it!"

The ginger-haired child, began to stomp, feet slamming against the wooden floor.

This isn't good… Nano thought. Once her creator started a tantrum, god only knew how long it would last. Unless…

She didn't want to do this, but she had to play her trump card early.

Reaching into her shopping bag, she pulled out a long, tube-shaped package. Hakase stopped wailing as soon it emerged. Her eyes grew wide with a mixture of joy and hunger.

"Swiss…Swiss roll…"

"That's right," Nano nodded. "Give me the brooch and you can have some before dinner."

"Half!" The inventor demanded.

The robot shook her head. The professor glared at her for all of a few seconds. The pastry seemed to be calling out to her; telling her to chow down on its soft, fluffy body.

Reluctantly, she gave up the fight and snatched the pastry from the plastic bag, running to the kitchen. Nano chased after her, stopping only to talk to Sakamoto.

"Sakamoto-san, please hide this, quickly!" She pleaded.

The cat was both confused and annoyed with the tasteless accessory being shoved into his mouth. The paper booklet being balanced on his back did not help matters either.

Nevertheless, he agreed and watched as the robot dashed to the kitchen.

Kids these days… He thought to himself.

Then there came the question of where to hide the thing. He wasn't prepared to scour the whole house for the perfect place: he felt a nap coming on.

In a moment of haste, he slipped the objects into the nearest bag he could find and lay down on Nano's futon. Just before he nodded off, he spent a few moments wondering what on earth the thing was. It looked like a regular compact but as experience had taught him, things were never that simple.

He was about to ponder this more when he realised that he really didn't care.  
\--------------------  
"Oh, no! I'm late!"

Nano, who tried so very hard to pose as a normal girl, hated being late. Not only did it mean she was missing out on her education but she feared that playing truant would paint her as a delinquent.

And no one wanted to be friends with a delinquent.

"Professor, can you make your own breakfast?!" She pleaded, brushing her hair, putting on her uniform and packing her bag all at the same time.

The ginger-haired girl snored and rolled her over in her sleep. The sheets got another layer of drool on them. Nano realised it was no use trying to wake her up; she'd just fall asleep again the moment she left the house.

She slipped her schoolbag onto her shoulder, grabbed a piece of toast from the toaster planted on her head, (One of the few occasions it actually came in handy) and dashed out the door.

"Goodbye, Sakamoto!" She shouted, charging out the door with the toast hanging out her mouth.

The cat yawned and opened his eyes. Strands of sleep were pulled apart as the dawn of a new day greeted him.

"I told you!" He shouted after her. "It's Sakamo-"

His correction was halted when he noticed the bag she was carrying. It was the same bag he'd put the brooch in yesterday!

For a moment, he considered running after her. Then, he decided against it: Nano was as fast as a racecar once she got moving and anyways, she was a responsible girl. Surely, nothing bad would happen; she knew what she was doing.

"Sakamoto! Sakamoto! Let's play!"

The kid on the other hand…

"Weren't you asleep just now?!"

"Sleeping's boring! Let's go play!"

And without waiting for a response, she picked up the cat and carried him into the living room. At this point, the feline knew that there was no escape.  
\--------------------  
Once she saw her friends, Nano slowed down to a brisk jog. Taking a quick look at her built-in watch, she noticed the time was 7:50. As far as time went, she had more than enough to enjoy her commute.

Phew, I overreacted again… She thought to herself. I need to stop doing that…

Nano wasn't one to consider herself 'Highly-strung'. Rather, she thought of herself a calm, sensible young woman. Unfortunately, she was also living with the world's smartest child and a talking cat. Given the shenanigans that the three of them found themselves in, she'd found it was best to be ready for anything.

Realising her hasty retreat from the lab, she decided to stop for a moment and check her bag. The last thing she wanted was to arrive at school without her pencil case after all.

"Let's see…" She muttered. "School books, pencil case, brooch, flask… Wait!"

One of those things was not like the others; one of those things didn't belong.

"Hakase's brooch!? How did this get in here?"

Scolding herself for not disposing of it herself, she hid behind a dumpster. What on earth was she supposed to do with it? It was far too late in the morning to run back and give to the professor. Keeping it with her was possible, but there was always the risk of it activating during class. What if it bumped against something in her bag?

"Normal girls do NOT transform!" She told herself.

But if she couldn't keep it with her and she couldn't take it back, she could always hide it and pick it up later. Would behind the dumpster be good enough? It was empty; the garbage men must have already been.

After making sure no one was around, she put the brooch behind the dumpster, keeping it snug between two stray flowers. If she had a heart, it would be beating like crazy. All she could do now was pray to the Buddha that it would remain unscathed for the next eight hours or so.

Once the deed was done, she let herself start jogging again. It only took a moment for her friends to appear on the horizon. Yuuko was laughing to herself and judging from Mio's reaction, she had just told one of her infamous bad jokes. Mai appeared to be reading.

There was still plenty of time before school started, she had more than enough time to stop and chat with her friends. After all, wasn't that what normal girls did?

"Morning, everyone!" She announced, running over and squeezing in between Mio and Mai.

"Good morning, Nano," Mio greeted.

"Salamat pagi!" Yuuko shouted.

Mai looked up from her book and waved.

"Aioi-san, did you remember your homework?" The robot asked.

To her surprise, the brunette gave a triumphant smirk and held up her fingers in a peace sign. Despite the mundanity of the question, she looked like she'd just conquered the world.

"Of course!" She grinned, pulling out a sheet of paper. Maths symbols were scrawn all over the page and there were numerous eraser marks littered throughout. No one had the heart to tell the girl that most of the answers were completely and utterly wrong. "I spent a whole two hours slaving over this! I'd better get a good mark!" Yuuko continued.

"You spent two hours on one sheet?" Mio asked.

"Of course! If you're going to do something, you gotta do it right!"

Mio wasn't the best at math but she was pretty sure that a double-sided A4 sheet would NOT take the average student two hours to finish. Then again, Yuuko was anything but ordinary.

The accuracy of the paper would matter, for out of nowhere, a sudden gust of wind snatched the paper from Yuuko's hand and sent it flying down the street. It rose and dove like an airborne dolphin, gliding gracefully across the sky.

For a moment, there was a silence. Then Yuuko turned and torpedoed down the street, feet stamping against the concrete, arms pumping like pistons.

"Stoooooop!" She pleaded to the flying hand-out. "Come back!"

The trio watched her, both bemused and embarrassed at once.

"Should we…Should we help her?" Nano asked.

Mio shook her head, her fingers pressed firmly against the bridge of her nose.

"No, she'll be fine."

"But I really think we should…What do you think, Mai?"

Mai was already halfway down the street, nose still clamped within her book.


	2. Discovery! The mysterious brooch!

"Stooooooop! Pleeeeease!"

Her mind completely consumed with the thought of getting her homework back, Yuuko had apparently forgotten that paper couldn't talk, nor did it have a mind of its own.

"I'll give you my lunch if you stoooop!"

Not that that stopped her from pleading with it.

Because Mother Nature was in a rotten mood that day, the hand-out floated higher and higher into the air. Yuuko could only watch as it soared into the heavens. In a matter of seconds, it was out of sight.

"No…"

With no other option, Yuuko fell to the ground in defeat. Her hopes, her dreams and worst of all, her chances of not being forced out into the hallway… They were all for nothing.

Literally gone with the wind.

All that time at her desk for nothing. She could have been watching TV, eating an ice lolly or heck, even spending the night sleeping. If she'd have known this would happen, she could have done something ten thousand times more productive!

Now, she'd have to sit out in the hall like always. Heck, she did it so often that she might as well bring a bean bag to school every day! At least then, she'd be somewhat comfortable, even if it meant ruining the whole point of the punishment.

Yuuko was just about to rise from her 'orz' position when she noticed something behind a dumpster. The sunlight exposed something bright and shiny, almost blinding the girl. Her plight immediately forgotten, she reached for the mysterious object. Expecting a coin at the most, she was surprised to find…

"A brooch?!"

The brooch was a deep blue in the shape of some kind of fish. It shone brightly in the morning sun as if it was filled with magical energy. Could it be that destiny had been working its magic, snatching her homework away for her to find this?

Probably not, but she was still overjoyed to find it.

Holding it over her chest, Yuuko admired herself in the reflection of the dumpster. Something about the accessory just felt right, like she was the only one worthy of wearing it. As she turned from side-to-side like an amateur model, a ringing sound echoed through the air.

"Crap!" Yuuko screamed, breaking into a run as she slipped the brooch into her bag. It was bad enough she forgot her homework; she didn't want to be punished for being late as well.

After all, if her mum found out, she'd kill her…

Standing out in the hallway for what had to be the hundredth time, Yuuko composed yet another haiku in her head. As usual, her carelessness had cost her the comfort of sitting down in a nice, comfy wooden chair. Instead, she was leaning against the wall, her knees buckling under the weight of her own body. It was taking every ounce of her self-control not to sit down, as doing so may make her teacher bring out the buckets.

And boy, did she hate holding buckets.  
\--------------------  
Once she'd exhausted every word in her mental dictionary (And several 'Mogami rivers'), her mind wandered back to the subject of the mysterious brooch. Who would leave such a valuable object out in the open? Was it even hers to take?

Maybe she'd hand it over to the police on her way home; that'd be the right thing to do. But why behind a dumpster of all places? Had a garbage-woman dropped it? Was there even such a thing as a garbage-woman?!

The pondering continued right up to lunchtime; the best part of the school day. She, Mio and Mai all moved their tables together, once again eating together. Nano wasn't with them: She apparently had a phone call to make.

And that made for excellent discussion material.

"Do you think Nano-chan has a boyfriend or something?~"

Mio sighed and stuffed another octopus hot dog into her mouth.

"I don't think so," She explained. "She's probably checking up on the professor or something."

"Aw, you're no fun. It's possible though, right?"

"If she had one, I think she'd tell us."

Yuuko sighed in disappointment. Trust Mio to take the wind out of her sails. Returning her attention back to her lunch, she was witness to nothing less than a devastating catastrophe.

"Where's my nigiri wrap?"

The sticky green strip of seaweed had suddenly become MIA. Yuuko checked under her rice, under her black beans and even under the entire lunch box. Still no sign. Then, she saw something hanging out of Mai's mouth. It was green, long and looked like it had a rough texture.

Yuuko almost screamed, tears welling up in her eyes.

Then, Mai took the object out of her mouth. It was just a piece of green tissue paper.

Yuuko's head landed on the table with a loud thud.

The nigiri wrap was in the corner of her bento box, where it had always been.

Instead of talking with a possible love interest, Nano was spending her lunch break talking to her cat, who was currently on a recon mission.  
\--------------------  
"What do you mean, it's not there!?"

Hiding in the girl's bathroom, Nano was suddenly thankful the professor had installed a phone in her wrist. Out of all the other 'upgrades' she'd been given over the years, this was one of the few useful ones.

"I mean, it's not there! Are you sure that's where you left it?"

"Yes, I'm sure! You're at the dumpster near the school, right?"

Sakamoto let out a sigh. He'd been interrupted from playing with his own tail just to look for a piece of jewellery. He also had to wear the portable earpiece the professor built, which was itchy and looked like he had giant white corn chip hanging out his ear.

And anyway, how was he supposed to know that the brooch he'd put in her bag was a superweapon?!

"Girl, calm down. How is that thing even activated?!"

"I…I don't know," Nano confessed.

A knock on the bathroom stall brought her out of her state of mind.

"Excuse me, are you done in there?" Came a voice.

"C-Coming!" Nano announced, before whispering into the phone. "Sakamoto-san, I need to go. Please, keep looking."

And before he could reply, she hung up.

Sakamoto was in a pickle now. He knew he should be looking for the device, and yet he'd left the kid unattended. Which was of greater importance? 7

Then he remembered that said girl was not only the most unpredictable person on the planet, but she now had free reign over the numerous cakes in the fridge. With that in mind, he headed home to stop her giving herself juvenile diabetes.  
\--------------------  
"And that's basically what happened."

Hakase nodded in understanding and slurped up a mouthful of instant noodles. She didn't look very happy.

"So, Nano lost it?" She said, folding her arms.

"Yeah. Might be best just to forget about it and…"

"NEVER!"

The small girl dug into her lab pocket and pulled out a small remote control, the centre of which was taken up by a worryingly big red button.

"Thankfully, every good professor has a plan B!" She said, pressing the button.

To the cat's surprise, the floorboards opened up. With a mechanical whirr, a large metal shark on wheels emerged from the hole, eyes glowing a bright red. It was painted a light grey, with teeth that looked strong enough to tear through steel.

"Wh…What the heck is that?!"

"This," Hakase explained. "Is Shark-searcher MK.5! It can find anything, anywhere! Isn't it cute?"

Sakamoto did not think it looked cute. Rather, he thought it looked like it was going to lunge at him and gobble him up in one bite. Still, there was no use trying to convince the kid otherwise.

"Why…Why a shark though?"

"Because Sharks are cute!"

Of course.

Grabbing a piece of blank paper and a large blue crayon, Hakase got to work. In a few seconds, she had a very, very rough draft of what the pendant looked like. The scrawl was forced into the machine's face.

"Find this!" She commanded.

The machine did nothing.

"Find this!" The prodigy repeated.

When the metal contraption remained still, she pressed the piece of paper right into its face.

"FIND! THIS!"

As if by magic, the machine whirred into life and zipped out of the kitchen with incredible speed. Sakamoto only just managed to dodge it before it ran over his tail.

"Do you even know if that thing works!?"

Hakase giggled and rubbed the back of her head.

"Not really. I just built it yesterday."

"Wait, what?"  
\--------------------  
After a perfectly normal afternoon full of lessons (Which she didn't pay attention to), Yuuko was just about ready to head home. All that remained was to wait for her friends to finish packing.

"Nano," She said. "Do you wanna walk home with us?"

"Eh?!"

The robot seemed to have been caught in her thoughts but quickly turned around to look at her friend. "Actually, do you wanna come back to my house? We have cake!"

"Sure!" Yuuko cheered. "Mio, Mai, change of plans!"

Nano watched as her overexcited classmate rallied the girls together. Unbeknownst to them, however, she had an ulterior motive to inviting her friends over; She knew full well that Yuuko got along well with the professor and understood her on a level that Nano could only hope to reach. That way, when she told Hakase she'd accidentally lost the machine, she hopefully wouldn't get too upset.

There was always the chance that Sakamoto had told her already but she'd cross that bridge when she came to it.

Once the girls left the school, Nano didn't pay much attention to the conversation going on beside her. All she could think about was what her creator would think. Would she cry? She hoped not; she'd run out of snacks to bribe her with! Maybe Yuuko could help calm her down?

"Nano?"

If push came to shove, she could always…

"Nano!?"

"A-Ah!? Yes!?"

Emerging from her own thoughts, she was met with the stare of two concerned schoolgirls (and Mai).

"I asked if you wanted to see the cool thing I found today," Yuuko asked.

"Oh, of course! I'd love to!"

With those words, Yuuko suddenly grew a massive grin on her face. Her hand was thrust into her schoolbag, eyes growing wide.

"Ok, are you ready?"

Everyone nodded politely.

"Are you really ready?!"

Everyone nodded again.

"Are you suuuuureee?"

"For god's sake, yes!" Mio cried.

The message came loud and clear, as Yuuko vigorously plucked out her brooch. It shimmered in the afternoon sun, looking like it was made of real jewels instead of the coloured plastic that it was truly composed of.

"Ah, it's so cool!" Mio grinned. "Where'd you find it?"

"That's the amazing thing! I found it beside a dumpster!"

"Why would anyone want to throw that away?"

While Yuuko and Mio ooh'd and ahh'd over the trinket, Nano gasped for air like a land-locked fish. That was where the brooch had been all this time; right under her nose?! It was a wonder that it hadn't activated already!

No, it's ok. Yuuko would never know what it does. She thought to herself.

"Looks like a magical girl trinket," Mai said.

"You're right, it does! Hey, do you think it'll let me transform?!"

Well, there went that hope.

Quickly, Nano weighed up her options. She could always just snatch the brooch and hit the ground running, but that would be rude. She could try to explain the situation, but that would only entice Yuuko to try it out for herself. But surely there was…

"Eeeeek!"

The sound of a crying woman caught the quartet's attention as it ripped through the air. Peering around the corner, they spotted a large, mechanical monstrosity chasing a woman down the street.

"Is…Is that a shark?!" Mio cried.

"HAND OVER YOUR BROOCH!" Screamed the robot, zipping after the lady.

The lady said nothing; she was too busy screaming her lungs out. A blue brooch shaped like a swordfish was visible through her fingers.

"Is it just me… Or does that brooch look kinda like yours?" Mio asked Yuuko.

The brunette peered as close as she dared to, catching the glimpse of something blue on the woman's chest. It was difficult to tell, but the similarity was there. As the woman rounded the corner, the girls pressed themselves against the fence, narrowly avoiding the metal beast.

"We can't just stand here!" Yuuko protested. "We've gotta go after it!"

"After it? That thing will shred us to pieces!" Mio complained.

The brunette pointed to her brooch and grinned. It wasn't just any grin either; it was a huge, tooth-baring, gleeful grin.

"Y…Yuuko, I don't think…" Nano began.

But Yuuko had already pressed her finger down on the brooch. A sharp blue glow shone and a soft 'Ching!' echoed from the jewellery. Determined to get the thing to work, the schoolgirl gave it a little shake.

"Come on!" She pleaded. "Work!"

Nano knew how to get the piece of machinery to work. She also knew that a woman's life was in danger. As the old saying went, desperate times called for desperate measures.

And if this wasn't a desperate time, she didn't know what was.

Without thinking, she snatched the brooch out of Yuuko's hand and let her finger glide around the white outline before handing it back.

"Please confirm transformation phrase."

"Woah!? It talks?!" Yuuko screamed.

Her hands juggled it back and forth like it was a hot potato. Before long, she found the android's hands being placed on hers to steady them.

"Quick, Yuuko!" Nano commanded. "M-Make up a password!"

Yuuko scanned her mind for something, anything that would make a cool battle cry. She hadn't watched superhero shows in years; they were something that had been left behind once she'd entered high school.

But there was one phrase she liked more than any other; a phrase that transcended the Japanese language and rested on a higher plane. It was the one phrase that was appropriate for an act of this calibre.

"Salamat pagi!"


	3. Transformation! Hello, Shark girl

Once the words passed her lips, a huge pillar of blue light erupted from the ground. The shockwave blew the other three girls back, Yuuko trapped inside.

As the brooch started growing, Yuuko saw her school uniform turn into light before emerging from the confines of her body. It spun around her before reshaping itself into a dark blue sleeveless wetsuit, brooch clinging to her breast. A pair of white boots shot onto her feet as a long, grey shark tail slowly emerged from her lower back. Spinning around, she felt energy surround her hands, white fingerless gloves covering them. Her hair sprout upwards, turning a deep blue to match her outfit. The general shape was still there, yet the top had been shaped into a dorsal-fin shape. When she finally opened her eyes, they were now as blue as the ocean.

For the final touch, a grey fin appeared on her back, stuck right in the middle of the outfit. In a final flash of light, she struck a triumphant pose, the cylinder that hid her from the world disappearing.

For a moment, there was silence. Mio and Nano stared. Mai took a picture with her smartphone. Their friend's outfit looked like a mixture between a traditional magical girl, a gijinka and a professional swimmer. Nevertheless, the outfit just screamed 'Aquatic' so somehow, it all fit together.

Yuuko meanwhile, looked over her body, in awe of her own transformation.

"This is… This is…"

"Yuuko?" Mio mumbled. "Are you OK?"

"This is… SOOOOOO COOOOOOOOL!"

Well, that wasn't the reaction the girls were expecting. Though given the circumstances, there was no telling how the high-schooler would react.

"So, I'm a magical girl now? What are my powers?! What are my powers?!"

She looked eagerly towards Nano, who was fishing about in her bag for the instruction manual.

"Um… I don't know…"

"Huh?"

Yuuko's cheery demeanour was dropped in favour of a confused/frightened persona. Her face was drained of all colour, her shark tail dropping to the pavement in defeat. Nano flipped through the booklet frantically, lamenting the lack of a proper contents page.

"S…Sorry!" The robot stuttered. "But I still can't find the right section! If you just wait a moment…"

Yuuko shook her head and stamped her feet like an impatient child.

"There's no time for this! I gotta go save that woman!"

And before anyone could say anything else, she ran out to save the day. She ran with vigour, courage and pride. At that moment, she truly was the image of a great hero.

At least, she would have been had she not fallen over. Truth be told, she was NOT used to running in heels.  
\--------------------  
Eventually, she wobbled over to an alleyway, where the shark-beast had cornered the poor woman.

"GIVE ME THE BROOCH!" Ordered the machine.

"N-No! This belonged to my great grandmother! I'll never hand it over!" The woman pleaded, clinging tightly to her jewellery. She was completely innocent, yet the device was not to know; it had been programmed to find things based on appearance alone.

Meanwhile, Yuuko peered around the corner, not sure what to do.

This is the part where I do the speech, right? But I don't even have a name! Wait, it's wide open, so I should probably get in a sneak attack while I can… She thought, trying to figure out what to do.

While all this was going on, the three girls had taken cover behind a trash can, looking around a corner at their friend, who was also looking around a corner.

"What's she doing?" Mio asked. "Is she rescuing her or what?"

"I…I'm not sure…" Nano confessed.

There was the sound of an engine revving up and the awful grind of metal rubbing on metal. Nano and Mio went back to tearing through the manual, flipping past scribbles and untidy handwriting.

While her friends panicked, Mai poured herself a refreshing cup of hot soup from her flask. She took a sip, enjoying the delicious combination of chicken and noodles. If anyone else wanted one, they only had to ask.

After a few seconds and another scream from the damsel in distress, Yuuko finally decided to act. Grabbing the shark from behind, she held it up over her head.

"Hey, you! Stop terrorising that woman!" She screamed.

The shark-bot whirled its wheels in frustration, unable to do anything else.

"Fear not, fair maiden! Shark-girl is here!" Yuuko announced, deepening her voice as low as she could. "I shall…I shall…Urgh…"

The initial burst of adrenaline was running out and despite her newfound strength, Yuuko found herself losing her balance. So, with no other option, she piledrived the machine into the ground, its tail end sticking out of the concrete.

"Are you alright?" She asked the woman, who was shaking like a leaf.

"I…I….I…" The lady stuttered, pointing at the strangely clad girl in front of her. She clearly wasn't human, the long tail that nearly touched the pavement confirmed that much. Was she an alien?!

"You?" The new hero asked.

"I…I…" She repeated, her finger still pointing.

"Me?"

"I…I…"

"Eye? Does your eye hurt?!"

The woman didn't reply; she only turned and ran out of the alleyway, screaming at the top of her lungs.

"Wait! Come back! Yuuko demanded, peering out of the alleyway. "Do you need some eye drops!? I can buy you some!"

A sudden beeping noise caught her attention. Turning around, she found that the shark-on-wheels had freed itself from its hole and was staring right at her.

"Brooch detected. Now changing target," It announced.

"EEEEEEHHHH?!"  
\--------------------  
While the three girls huddled behind their makeshift shelter, Yuuko found herself being chased up and down the street by the two-wheeled menace.

"Heeeeeeellllllp!" She screamed, her arm waving like they were made of wet spaghetti. Feet stamping against the pavement desperately, she tried valiantly to shake the machine off her trail, yet to no avail.

Meanwhile, her friends did nothing to help.

Running down the street, Yuuko was forced to decide her next action. Fast.

If I don't do something, I'm gonna be chum! She thought to herself, tail swishing like a whip as she stumbled down the street.

There weren't any good hiding places in sight and the police wouldn't be much help: Whoever heard of a robot shark?!

No, the only option now was to stand her ground and fight like a woman. She had powers now; she could easily take down this bucket of bolts! Now was the time for courage!

With that in mind, she stopped in her tracks and turned around.

As she did so, her massive tail smacked the robot right in the side of its face. Time seemed to move in slow motion as it smacked against the cold metal, a few pieces flying out of the robot's body as it shot through the air and landed a good few feet away.

D…Did I do that?!

The machine wasn't finished yet though: It flipped right side up and charged at her again. This time, however, its mouth moved up and down in a chomping motion. Shark girl clutched her tail in alarm before leaping out of the way.

There was an ear-aching screech before the beast turned around again, continuing its assault. With no other option, the heroine dodged charge after charge.

This is bad… She thought. Isn't there supposed to be someone who can help me? Someone, anyone!?

"Aioi-san!"

It was a voice from the heavens. It was soft, beautiful and coming from the direction of a dumpster. It could only be…

"Nano!?"

"Get over here! I know how to defeat it!"

She didn't have to tell her twice.

Dashing over to the direction of her friends, Yuuko found the shark-bot chasing after her again. It may have been trying to kill her, but the schoolgirl found herself praising its persistence. After another clumsy dodge, she managed to grab a hold of it by the tail.

Clutching it tightly, she spun around and around like a miniature hurricane, almost drilling into the ground beneath her. Faster and faster she whirled, a strong current of wind building up around her.

Then, she let go. The shark-bot went flying.

In the few seconds of freedom she had left, the hero hurried over to her friends.

"I've found the powers section!" Nano cheered. "There's a special power that can destroy any foe!"

"ANY foe? So that shark robot?"

"Yes."

"Godzilla?!"

"M...Maybe?"

"GOD?!"

Mai brought down a well-deserved paper fan smack onto Yuuko's head. Her dorsal-fin shaped hair wobbled from the impact.

"Yuuko, shut up and listen!" Pleaded Mio. "We're in serious danger here!"

She did as she was told, waiting for the android to continue.

"Anyways, Hakase based the whole design off a shark. That means she made it so your jaw is powered up a hundredfold while transformed."

"So you're saying…"

Nano cringed.

"Aioi, to defeat that thing…You have to… Bite it."

She couldn't have heard that correctly, could she? Bite it? That'd break all her teeth! Then she'd have to go the dentist and her mother would never let hear the end of it! In protest, she covered her mouth and clenched her teeth. Her beautiful, shiny, natural teeth.

"Nuh-uh…" She mumbled through her palm. "Nhot happanin"

"Aioi-san…" Nano pleaded.

But still, the stubborn girl shook her head. Fighting evil was all well and good but she did not want to be stuck with a dental bill.

And in the distance, a faint engine whirred…

"It's coming back!" Mio pleaded. "Please, Yuuko! Do your job!"

And yet she didn't move.

The four girls stood there in a stalemate. Then, Mai stood up.

"Wh…Where are you going?" Yuuko asked her friend.

The book-worm simply stared out in the distance. Then, she spoke.

"I can distract it long enough for all of you to get away," She said, removing herself from the shelter.

The three girls sat there, not sure what to do. What Mai was doing required great courage and selflessness. But at the same time, god knows what would happen if no one did anything!

Yuuko looked down at her hands. Some hero she was. The girls on the television would have beaten this thing in two seconds flat. And what had she done? Thrown it around a little, sure but as for saving the day…

"M…Mai…" She whimpered.  
\--------------------  
Mai Minakami stood in the middle of the road, the machine slowly rolling towards her. Given all its punishment, part of its head was missing, circuitry exposed for the world to see. She couldn't help but notice that it wobbled like jelly as it rolled towards her.

"Are…you…Broooooooch?" It warbled, its voice low and garbled.

The schoolgirl stood there with her arms and legs spread apart. The wind blew through her jet-black hair. The stand-off had truly begun.

Time seemed to draw to a standstill. The machine stared at Mai. Mai stared at the machine. Then, without warning, the shark-mobile charged once again. With its central processor damaged, it had lost any and all sense of motive or purpose.

"Mai!" Nano and Mio yelled, tears welling in their eyes.

Yuuko however, remained silent. This is was it. She, the coward was going to watch her best friend get shredded into pieces. She would forever go down as a failure of a magical girl. Just like her studies, her jokes, her entire existence, this would go down in history as the biggest act of cowardice in the world.

Soon, there would be nothing left of Mai but a few bones (And perhaps an organ or two if the machine was feeling generous). The jokes they had shared during the sunset, the years of fun and games, the laughs, the tears they'd had shared…

Gone.

Well, like hell she was going to let that happen!  
\--------------------  
The shark was inches away from Mai when it happened. A human-shaped missile careened into the side of the robot, smashing it away from the schoolgirl. Once the dust had settled, Mai saw the magical girl pin the oversized fish to the ground, opening her mouth as wide as her jaw would let her.

Shark-girl hesitated for only a second before tearing her overpowered jaw into the robot's body. To everyone's surprise, her teeth tore through the metal like it was made of wet toilet paper. Pieces of wire, metal and glass flew everywhere. Again and again, she bit into the robot, sobbing as the disgusting taste of oil passed her lips.

The robot struggled during the feeding frenzy, yet Yuuko tore at it like she'd never seen food before. Soon enough, the machine's orange eyes dimmed out as the injuries overwhelmed it. By the time the deed was done, the ground was littered in what had formerly been a death machine. The girl gasped for breath, taking a well-deserved seat beside her victim.

For a moment, no one dared say anything. Then, Yuuko made a noise that was a mix between a choking cow and a sputtering car engine. Mai, ever the helpful friend, slapped her on the back. A shard of glass shot out of the hero's mouth and impaled itself perfectly into a brick wall.

"I…I did it!" Yuuko grimaced, giving a thumbs-up gesture.

"Yes. Yes, you certainly did…" Nano said.

There was another round of silence. Yuuko tugged at her outfit.

"So…Uh… Do you know how to turn this off?"

For the second, there the sound of flicking.

"No, she didn't…"

It was at that moment that everyone decided a trip to the professor's house was in order.


	4. Hope! Return to our everyday life!

"I'm home!"

Nano, along with her merry group of friends, trudged tiredly into Shinonome laboratory. Given the stressful day, Nano, Mio and Yuuko all looked like they'd just walked a marathon in the Sahara. Mai wore her standard expression, save for a spot of soup stuck to her face. A wipe with her sleeve soon fixed that, however. Without asking, they all collapsed on the living room floor.

"Nano! Nano! Welcome home!"

Hakase dashed into the room and proceeded to trip over Mio's leg. She hit the carpet like a meteor, her momentum from her dash carrying over. Tears welled up in her eyes as she pushed herself upright. She hadn't even bruised her leg yet the shock was more than enough to upset her.

Thankfully, her tantrum was immediately forgotten when she saw Yuuko.

"Ah! You found it! You found the brooch!" She squealed.

"Yeah, I did…" Yuuko smiled, giving a weary thumbs-up.

As the schoolgirl sat up, Hakase admired her friend's new outfit. She ran her hands through her dorsal-fin shaped hair, awed at her now-sapphire eyes and let out a squeal of delight.

"It works! Hooray!" She squealed. "Let's have a cake to celebrate!"

It only took her a moment to pull a swiss roll out of the fridge and a second more to put it on the table.

"Hakase, this is no time for cake!" Nano scolded. "You'll spoil your dinner!"

The three girls stared at her. The android stared back before realising that she had completely missed the point. At that point, a bathtub could have hit her on the head to complete the joke.

"I…I mean… How do you turn this transformation off?"

The girl looked up from her cake and stared at Nano.

"Isn't it in the instruction book?"

She shook her head.

"Oh, right. I don't know then!"

"EEEEEEEEEEEEEEHHHHHHHHH!?"

Yuuko began frantically pulling at her wetsuit but the fabric refused to budge. Her boots were just as stubborn, having found their new permanent home on her feet.

She didn't need to attack her hair to know the blue wouldn't wash out.

"Seriously?!" The hero sobbed. "I can't go to school like this!"

"Yes, you can! You look amazing, like a real hero!"

Yuuko looked at the professor like she'd screamed every swear word in the dictionary.

"No, I can't! Look at me!" She bellowed, holding up her giant tail. "Aren't magical girls supposed to keep themselves secret anyway?"

"But why?" Hakase cried. "Then whenever there's danger, you'll be ready!"

It was at that moment that Nano had found a kindred spirit in Yuuko. The key on her back was a small case compared to her new… Makeover, but the professor was just as stubborn when it came to removing it.

"But wait…" Yuuko gasped.

Everyone was alarmed by the sudden shift of emotion on her face. Gone was the childish teenager that they knew and loved; instead was a face of full fear.

"If I can't turn back… The government will find out…"

Hakase stopped eating her pastry.

"Then they'll take me away…"

The cake fell to the table.

"Cut me open and…"

Hakase promptly burst into tears. Loud, sobbing, wailing tears.

"Yuuuuuuko!" She wailed, tackling her friend and clinging to her as tight as she could. "Don't go! I'll change you baaaaaack!"

The idiot girl looked up from the embrace to find Nano glaring daggers at her. A cold sweat forming at the back of her head, she promptly carried the still-sobbing girl out of the room.  
\--------------------  
After a few minutes, a brilliant light shone through the house. Moments later, Yuuko walked back into the room, completely back to her normal self. The brooch was still attached to her school uniform.

"That was sure was quick," Mio said. "Are you OK, Yuuko?"

"Of course, of course!" Yuuko grinned. To celebrate, she did a few spins, glad that the risk of slapping someone with an over-sized tail was gone. "It's nice to have my normal hair colour back too!" She smiled, running a hand through her brown locks. "Blue was just..."

"And what's wrong with blue?"

Over in the corner, Mio had her hands crossed over her chest, huffing up a storm. Yuuko gulped and put her hands up in surrender.

"Hey, hey, nothing! Nothing!" She chuckled nervously.

Mio still wasn't amused.

"Moving on…" Nano suggested. "Hakase, you need to get rid of that brooch. It's far too dangerous."

"Aw…"

Nano was surprised that the whine came from not just the prodigy but from Yuuko as well. The younger girl jumped in front of her friend, arms spread apart like a human shield.

"Never! Yuuko likes being a magical girl!"

The girl was just one more word away from a full-on tantrum. She'd worked hard on her invention; she couldn't just get rid of it! Turning to her best friend for instruction, tears started to well in her bright blue eyes.

"That's right!" Yuuko protested. "Didn't you see me out there, I was amazing!" Like a stubborn child, she clutched the weapon tightly, eyes narrowing into a glare. "What if something else attacks someone?"

Just when all hope seemed lost, Mai stepped forward. In one swift movement, she snatched the brooch off Yuuko's breast and lay it in Hakase's hand.

"Yuuko can't be trusted. Keep it safe for us."

Hakase looked confused so the high-schooler decided to elaborate.

"Yuuko never remembers her homework. What if she were to lose this when we needed her?"

Mio, sensing what her friend was talking about, jumped on the bandwagon.

"That's right! One time, I asked her to buy me Yakisoba and she got me Yakisaba!"

Hakase giggled, her signature smile returning.

"That's silly! Silly Yuuko!" She laughed, pointing at the girl in question.

"Aw, come on…" The idiot mumbled, glaring at Mio. "I thought we were over that!"

Nano cleared her throat and continued where her friend had left off.

"She's right. What if someone wanted to steal the brooch?"

Even with all her intellect, Hakase had not thought of that. The magical girls on TV all had enemies that wanted their power; why would Yuuko be any different?

"I understand," She muttered, her face suddenly serious. "Yuuko, please let me keep a hold of this."

Yuuko looked tearful but clutched her hand into a fist. With great courage, she nodded in understanding.

"Right, keep it safe for me, OK? When evil comes, I'll take it up again."

Outstretching their free hands, the two engaged in what had to be the handshake of the century. It was truly was a passing of the torch.  
\---------------------  
The next day, Yuuko walked to school in silence. Although she knew that her sacrifice was for the greater good, she couldn't help but mourn what could have been. The taste of the robot's metal still plagued her taste buds, even after she'd brushed her teeth five times (And received a heavy slap from her mother for wasting toothpaste). It was a reminder that would carry on forever.

She had been allowed to keep the manual but that did nothing but make her yearn harder. Even more so when she learnt about her other, unused powers.

And to think, I had the power to breathe underwater! That would have been so cool… She thought to herself.

She was so caught up in her thoughts that she didn't notice her friends walking up behind her. It wasn't until Mio tapped her on the shoulder that she realised she wasn't alone.

"Yuuko, are you alright?"

"Huh?! Y…Yeah, I'm fine." She insisted.

She was lying. Everyone knew it. Yet none of them knew what to do about it.

"Aioi-san…" Nano muttered. She opened her mouth to say something more but closed it again. At least when Hakase had a tantrum, she would scream and cry. In this case, there was a heavy silence and she wasn't sure if it was her place to fill it.

So, she didn't. The girls walked up together in an awful silence.

Unbeknownst to them, however, Mai pulled a long piece of paper out of her bag...  
\--------------------  
Despite everything that had happened yesterday, one thing had remained the same; Yuuko had forgotten to do her homework.

Mio knew this and fully expected her friend to beg to copy her work. To her surprise, however, that moment never came. Rather, her friend was getting ready to stand, simply accepting her fate.

"Y…Yuuko?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you want to copy my homework?"

The dunce shook her head, a sad smiling gracing her face. It was the face of someone who had given up all hope; that did not live as much as simply trudge through life.

She was about to leave the room when Mai slid her chair in front, blocking her escape. A roll of paper was shoved in the girl's direction.

"Mai, what's this?"

The girl just smiled and adjusted her glasses. The scroll remained where it was. Obediently, her friend took the piece of paper and walked solemnly out of the classroom.  
\----------------------  
Mr Tabasaki was surprised to already find her in the hallway, slouched against the wall and staring out into space.

"Aioi, did you forget your homework again?" He muttered.

She turned around and nodded slowly. Tears were welled up in her eyes, trying their hardest to break free. The grown man sighed and entered the classroom. For once, he didn't feel like bopping her on the head. Usually, the girl would try to trick him, either by copying someone else's homework (He had caught her doing this many a time) or worming her way out by complimenting him. This time, she was owning up to her mistakes. That deserved a small bit of mercy.

When the door shut behind him, Yuuko was alone. The paper hung helplessly in her hand. Visions of Shark girl saving the day flooded her head. In one fantasy, she saved the town from aliens In another, she stopped God from crushing it under his finger. How was she expected to go back to her everyday life after something like that had happened?

And yet, she had no one to blame but herself. She could have kept the brooch, yet she gave it up of her own volition. She knew it was the right thing to do...

But why do I feel like trash?

With nothing else to do, she unrolled the piece of paper. Mai had given her. As if to spite her, it had the floor and rolled down the hallway. Further and further it went, no letter anywhere in sight. Yuuko couldn't even be bothered to react to the prank; she simply walked along, taking the blank paper into her arms as she went. Before long, she reached the end of the trail. It hadn't been a total waste of paper, given that there was something written at the bottom.

"Dear Yuuko…" It began.

She looked down, expecting something more. The paper was blank. She bent down and started exploring the long white strip, finding two final words printed on the other side.

"Thanks for saving me."

Warm, salty water poured from the girl's eyes, dripping onto the paper. Mai could have written anything on that paper; heck, she could have just left it blank for the sake of comedy. Instead, she chose to thank her. She was truly showing her utmost gratitude, even if it was in a rather strange fashion. Leaning back against the wall, the schoolgirl composed another haiku in her head.

A friend's gratitude, is a wonderful reward…

She thought about using her signature ending but decided to try something different.

Amazon river.  
\--------------------  
At lunchtime, Yuuko was in much, much better spirits. Not only did her signature smile return but she managed to make 5 terrible puns in the short span of an hour, much to Mio's displeasure.

"You're certainly feeling better," Mio said during a brief respite from the awful jokes.

"Of course, of course," Yuuko replied. "After all, I've still got you guys, right?"

She leant across the table and gave Mai a little wink. The normally stoic girl gasped quietly and handed over a can of ramune, a soft blush covering her face. Yuuko took the drink gratefully and took a big gulp. It didn't taste of ramune. Or lemonade. Or any kind of carbonated drink. In fact, it didn't taste of anything at all!

That's because the liquid inside was anything but carbonated. It was room temperature tap water.

Now would be the moment where Yuuko would make a face in response. Instead, Mai was surprised to find her friend laughing.

"Thanks, Mai," She said after she'd finished.

The prankster didn't even feel bad about her failure. She just gave her friend a thumbs-up and a smile, much to Mio's confusion.

"What...What just happened?" She asked.

"It's just Mai being Mai," Yuuko replied, giving her friend a friendly wink.

Having powers is nice and all… She decided. But having friends is the greatest power of all.

And if that wasn't a lesson worth learning (If a slightly generic one), she didn't know what was.


End file.
